Representative Liz Cheney (R-WY) has been officially removed from her post as GOP Conference Chair. “Cheney officially out. It was a voice vote. And it was quick,” one reporter in the room said.
According to sources who were present at the vote, there was no debate, and most representatives simply wanted to get the process over with. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who repeatedly and vociferously defended Cheney until recently, requested a voice vote to determine the level of support for removing Cheney. This is markedly different from the last time there was a vote on her role in leadership, when McCarthy stuck his neck out to defend Cheney, and the Republicans voted via a secret ballot. Cheney had already voted to impeach President Trump by this time.
Cheney officially out. It was a voice vote. And it was quick. pic.twitter.com/LPXwZ9mNuN
— Emily Brooks (@emilyelarsen) May 12, 2021
During the vote, Cheney proclaimed “We cannot let the former president drag us backward and make us complicit in his efforts to unravel our democracy. Down that path lies our destruction, and potentially the destruction of our country.” Her statement was met with resounding boos from the rest of the caucus. She later said “I will do everything I can to ensure that the former President never again gets anywhere near the oval office,” after the vote had concluded.
The move comes as she has continued to attack her own party and voters, rather than make peace and move forward with the rest of the party. Her unwillingness to not attack her voters is what inspired the second vote to remove her, this time with the support of the rest of the GOP leadership.
House leadership, notably McCarthy, supports replacing Cheney with New York Representative Elise Stefanik. This is despite the fact that Stefanik has an even worse voting record then Liz Cheney, breaking with President Trump on a myriad of issues, ranging from the 2017 tax cuts, to emergency funding of the southern border wall, to the Paris Climate accords.
Liz Cheney, still, has not taken the opportunity to reflect on her mistakes. In her first interview after the vote, she said “We have seen the danger that he continues to provoke with his language. We have seen his lack of commitment and dedication to the constitution. And I think it’s very important that we make sure whomever we elect is somebody who will be faithful to the Constitution.”